SSL Configuration Checklist for Connect with AEM-based Events

1. Always begin with a fully functional installation of Connect and AEM-based Events before adding SSL; Do not attempt to secure a server that is not fully tested to run all features without SSL: A server running all features in the clear with no problems manifested is the only place to begin.

2. Decide whether to use hardware-based or software-based SSL and obtain appropriate public certificates and FQDN’s. If needed, see Mohit’s excellent instructions to generate CSRs. If you are using software-based SSL, stunnel can either be installed locally or on a separate server. If you are using hardware-based SSL you will want to refer to the relevant third-party documentation along with that provided by Adobe. For F5 BIG-IP LTM, the following articles along with this blog article and the resources aforementioned will help:

For information about stunnel installation options with Connect 9, see Jim’s blog post on Adobe Connect 9.0.0.1 and 9.1 stunnel installation options. Within the 9.0.0.1 installation folder, under \Adobe Connect 9.0.0.1\Adobe Connect\Merge_Modules, we provide the installer for stunnel-4.53. From there, you can install Stunnel 4.53 for your SSL deployment. Adobe QE has tested stunnel version 4.56 collocated with Connect – installed within the Connect installation directory. These days it is arguably prudent to use the latest security option tested. Depending on the version of Connect you are running, if you wish to use stunnel locally, then you would create and/or populate the stunnel directory under the root install directory: Connect\9.1.2\stunnel.

Click on this thumbnail diagram below to see what it would look like with a hardware-based SSL accelerator:

Click on this thumbnail diagram below to see what it would look like with stunnel collocated with Connect:

The rest of this checklist & summary will assume stunnel is being used collocated with Connect, but the configuration variables will apply to hardware-based external SSL acceleration options as well and even a casual glance back at these diagrams will help you infer the differences.

The sample file editing offered herein will be based on the single server stunnel example depicted in the diagram above.

3. Four FQDN’s are required: This is how our working example FQDN list would appear in a host file.

192.167.21.176 connectmtg.domain.com

192.167.21.175 connect.domain.com

192.167.21.174 cqauthor.domain.com

192.167.21.173 cqpublisher.domain.com

4. Four certificates (or a wildcard certificate) is needed; here is the list of certificates for SSL following our example:

connectmtg.domain.com

connect.domain.com

cqauthor.domain.com

cqpublisher.domain.com

Note: These are depicted in our working example as a wildcard certificate: domain.com. If the certificates are not trusted public certificates, then meeting rooms will not open; self-signed certificates will not work with meeting unless they are installed on all clients. Place the certificates into the stunnel installation directory: \Connect\9.1.2\stunnel\

5. Backup and edit the stunnel.conf file: in the \Connect\9.1.2\stunnel\ directory to set up the four VIPs and pools:

6. Next backup and edit the custom.ini file: By default, the custom.ini will point to 4502 and 4502 for CQ Author and Publisher respectively; you must change the links to reflect https rather than http and also change the names to the correct FQDNs and also enable SSL for Connect with these following entries:

Depending on the version of Connect you are running, you may need to add the certificate to the java CA certificates in Connect in order to allow images in the AEM-based Events module to appear in Connect. Ignore this step unless you are running Connect 9.0.0.1 and even then, if at all possible, simply use a later version of Connect instead as this issue has been fixed and this workaround is made superfluous for later versions:

For 9.0.0.1, export and then import the SSL certificate: Log into Connect and click on the lock in the URL line to the left of HTTPS and click the button in the pop-up: More Information>View Certificates>Details>Export to export the SSL certificate. Save the certificate in the jre\bin directory in the root install directory for Connect: Connect\9.0.0.1\jre\bin